MARA-BASED INDUSTRIAL LOW-COST IDENTIFICATION ASSAYS

Informazioni relative al progetto

MARILIA

ID dell’accordo di sovvenzione: 952110

DOI

10.3030/952110

Progetto chiuso

Data della firma CE 6 Maggio 2020

Data di avvio 1 Settembre 2020

Data di completamento 28 Febbraio 2023

Finanziato da

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Future and Emerging Technologies (FET)

Costo totale

€ 2 000 741,25

Contributo UE

€ 1 999 972,50

Coordinato da

AIT AUSTRIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY GMBH
Austria

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - MARILIA (MARA-BASED INDUSTRIAL LOW-COST IDENTIFICATION ASSAYS)

Periodo di rendicontazione: 2022-03-01 al 2023-02-28

Sintesi del contesto e degli obiettivi generali del progetto

The fast and cost-efficient detection of pathogens is highly important in many sectors such as healthcare, agriculture, and food industry. However, current technologies are limited, and significant advances are required to develop lowcost detection assays that can detect a few bacterial cells within less than one hour. In the FETOpen project MARA, which is the basis for MARILIA, we have developed novel technologies and tools that have a high exploitation potential. Thus, we have initiated the follow-up project MARILIA, which aims to exploit these results and realise a new detection concept for the fast, low-cost identification of human pathogens in water samples.
In MARILIA, we aim to increase the technology readiness level (TRL) of our novel detection concept from TRL 2 to TRL 5. A well-balanced consortium has been established, comprising an applied research institute as coordinator
(AIT Austrian Institute of Technology), the University of Zagreb, the basic research institute Ruder Boskovic Institute, the SME Dayone acting as business incubator, and the large company IREN engaged as water supplier in northern Italy. If the MARILIA detection
assay meets our interally defined KPIs regarding specificity and sensitivity, a start-up will be founded to commercially exploit the innovations in the post-project phase.

Lavoro eseguito dall’inizio del progetto fino alla fine del periodo coperto dalla relazione e principali risultati finora ottenuti

The project has five work packages (WP). Two are dedicated to communication, dissemination, commercial expolitation, and project and innovation management. Within these two WPs, a detailed market and stakeholder analysis was conducted. Further, product requirements and specifications including legal and regulatory aspects were collected. Several use and test cases for our technologies were defined. A communication and dissemination toolkit including a project website and social media presence was elaborated. An IP protection and exploitation plan was elaborated. Finally, a business model for the MARILIA technologies was developed.

The other three WPs are dedicated to R&D and product development. So far, our activitied there resulted in at least three exploitable results. (I) A bacteria detection assay based on bacteria binding peptides, (II) site-specific introduction of DNA-tags on proteins, (III) software for the modelling of DNA/protein hybrid systems.
Three manuscripts were published, two others are currently under review. Two posters were presented at conferences.

Progressi oltre lo stato dell’arte e potenziale impatto previsto (incluso l’impatto socioeconomico e le implicazioni sociali più ampie del progetto fino ad ora)

Based on our assesment, we consider that the project has improved the state of the art in two sectors. First, the chemical prototocols developed and evaluated for the regio-selective DNA-tagging of glycoproteins can be considered new. Second, in silico modeling framework provides new possibilities to model and validate DNA/protein hybrid structures.
Furthermore, we expect that we will develop a bacteria detection assay for water samples at the end of the project. The potential impact of this result is the foundation of a new startup commercially exploiting this technology.

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